Branch deals

BMO Harris Bank in Chicago has agreed to sell 31 Wisconsin branches to a California real estate investment trust.

PacWest Bancorp in Los Angeles has agreed to sell four properties in California to a real estate firm.

SouthCrest Financial Group in Woodstock, Ga., has agreed to sell its only Alabama branches to Guardian Credit Union in Montgomery, Ala.

The $8.3 billion-asset CVB said Thursday that it would pay $57.5 million in cash and stock for the $416 million-asset parent of Valley Business Bank.

New Bancorp in New Buffalo, Mich., has hired Shawna Zawada as controller and principal financial officer, days after Russell Dahl resigned as chief financial officer.

Southern First Bank in Greenville, S.C., and Five Star Bank in Warsaw, N.Y., are entering new markets.

Some branch deals come with added value. A case in point is the $2 billion-asset Old Second Bancorp's agreement to buy a branch in Chicago from Talmer Bancorp in Troy, Mich. in a deal that includes deposits, assets and a vice chairman.

Fifth Third in Cincinnati has closed a branch in downtown Columbus as part of an ongoing streamlining effort.

BB&T in Winston-Salem, N.C., plans to cut 240 jobs and close 28 branches as part of its integration of National Penn Bancshares.

CBI Bank & Trust in Muscatine, Iowa, said Tuesday that it has agreed to buy a branch in Davenport, Iowa, from MidWestOne Bank in Iowa City.

KeyCorp will sell 18 branches as part of an agreement with the Justice Department and the Federal Reserve Board to complete its purchase of First Niagara Financial Group.

Peoples Bancorp in Prairie Du Chien, Wis., has agreed to buy four branches in Wisconsin from FirstMerit.

In a more competitive-than-ever industry, sales activity is an important part of bankers' jobs, but it is not the only part.

Bank of America appears to be retaining more deposits from recent branch sales, using technological advancements to keep customers despite the lack of a physical location.

First Bancorp in Southern Pines, N.C., and First Community Bancshares in Bluefield, Va., have agreed to exchange branches in two states.

First Federal Bank of Kansas City has agreed to a $2.8 million settlement with the Department of Housing and Urban Development to resolve allegations of redlining in African-American neighborhoods.

Cape Cod Five Cents Savings Bank in Orleans, Mass., has agreed to buy a branch in Falmouth, Mass., from Mutual Bank.

First Midwest Bancorp in Itasca, Ill., plans to close branches and sell unwanted real estate as customers shift to online banking.

The opportunity for banks from the dramatic growth in deposits goes beyond just funding loans.

Having shored up capital following the financial crisis, many banks are flush with cash and in search of ways to put it to use. One option for banks that did sale-leasebacks in the past is to reacquire their branches.